Automatic wagon-brake



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Patent-ed June .7, 1898.'

Y the forward'and backward movement of the UNITED."-

PATENT FFICE.

- -.ior1Ne1BsON.RoBINsoN, OF wARsAw, KENTUCKY.

srncfrrcn'rrolvfoming part of Letters Patent No. Y605,135, dated June 7, 1898.

` Application filed April' 16,1897. Renewed May 9, 1898. Serial No. 680,231. (No model.)

To all whom it may oon/cern: y Beit known that I, JOHN GIBSON ROBINSON, of Warsaw, county ofGa-llatin, State of' Kentucky, have' invented certain new and useful Devices and Improvements in Automatic Wagon-Brakes; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, referencebeing had to the'accouipanying drawings, forming part a thereof. Y

My invention has relation to improvements in automatic wagon-brakes and the obj ect is to providev and construct a brake for roadvehicles which isautomatically operated by h ind carriage of the vehicle, so that when'the vehicle is moving down a declivity a sliding iss forward fmovement of the hind carriage will actuate the brake-levers Vand cause them` to brake the wheels and prevent the rapidfdescent of the vehicle without the backing force of the team being brought into requisition, and when the .vehicle has reached thelevel the brakes will be automatically released.

My invention is fully and clearly illustrated in the ac'companyingdrawings, forming part Figure l is a plan vie'w of the running-gear of a wagon having ,my improved automatic braking mechanism mounted thereon.4 Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section through thecoup-4 ling-pole and cross-section through the front bolster and iifth-wheel,"`showing also in en d and side view the mechanism for preventing the forward movement ofl the hind carriage?V Fig. 3 is a detail central longitudinal 'section' through the bolster, the fifth-wheel, and axle, showing the slotted plate on the bolster and the arrangement of the king-bolt in the slotr ted plateA on the bolster. Fig. 4 is a view of the bolster bearing-plate. e

Referring tothe drawings, 1 l designate the front wheels of the wagon; 2, the axle arranged/therein; 3 3, the hounds, and 4 the tongue. tion.

rIfhese are all of the usual construc- 5 5Y designate the hind wheels carryf vided with a plurality of pin-holes 8, through which pins 'are projected and-held, as will be hereinafter specically stated. The forward ends" of the rear vhounds B are secured together byupper and lower rounded plates 9 9, having ianges overlying the tongues of the hounds and `properly secured thereto, substantially as shown. These plates constitute a sleeve, through which the" coupling-pole is `passed and loosely and slidingly disposed, so

that under ordinary progression of the Vehicle down a declivity the hind carriage will tend tobe moved and carried forward, slid- Aingthe sleeve on the coupling-pole and actuating the brakes, as hereinafter specified. To limit the backward movement of the hind carriage and to hold the sleeve and the carriage innormal position when the vehicle is beingk drawn on an Ordinary level road or street,'I provide an adjustable collar lO, passed over the cou} ;)lingpole, and secure itl in'any position desired and determined upon by a pin'fll, passed through registering pin-holes in the Vcollar and projected through o'ne of the pin-holes in the coupling-pole. This collar 10 is arranged at sufch a point On the eO'upling-pole'as4 to prevent the sleeve 'y l9 from movingA back"farther than it is desired, and in this function constitutes a stop. C @designate the brakelevers. These brake-levers are elbow-levers in shape and carry on their braking-arms"brake-shoes 12 of any suitable construction, adapted to brake on the perimeters of the wheels, substantially as yseen inthe drawings. The inner arms of the brake-levers are preferably directed outward, so that in the forward action of the hounds they will always be actuated-outwardly to effect the engagement of the brakes against the wheels. The levers are fulcrumed to the hounds at their elbows by means of strong fulcrum pins or bolts L, the fulcrumbolts also being projected through a crosspiece M, which they hold in'"p1ace;the said cross-piece serving to 'strengthemthehounds andthe projecting ends thereof kserving as supports to the outer end "prtionsofthe brake-arms of the elbowbrake-Llevers.

The inner ends of the brake-levers have links D D pivotally connected thereto, the

inner ends of the links being pivoted to a IOO sleeve E, movably arranged on the couplingpole and held thereon in the required position by means of a pin K, passed through the sleeve and coupling-pole.

It may be desirable to prevent the action of the brakes and keep the rear carriage from pushing forward under circumstances, such as when the vehicle is being backed into or out of a barn-floor or when traveling on a level road. To accomplish this, I detachably and adjust-ably arrange a collar L on the coupling-pole and pass a pin 13 through it and the coupling-pole, or the pin 13 may be provided with an enlarged head, as seen in Fig. 2 of the drawings, and serve the purpose. Through the axle are projected and secured two eyebolts l-t 1i or other suitable bearing devices which will hold a rock-bar in place. In these bearings is jou rnaled arockbar F, lying parallel to the axle and formed or provided with a lateral lug or arm G, arranged at right angles to the rock-bar and having its free end disposed to engage behind the pin or collar, and thus hold the hind carriage, when the engagement is effected, from moving forward on the coupling-pole. On the outer end of the rock-bar is secured a handle-bar or lever II, by which the bar is rocked and the arm G moved into and out of engagement with the stop on the couplingpole.

In order that the wagon-bed (not shown) can move forward with the hind carriage, it is rigidly secured to the hind bolster and to the front bolster, and the front bolster is given a limited play or forward-slidin function. To accomplish this object, a bearingplate 1G is secured to the under face of the front bolster 17, and in this bearing-plate is formed a T-slot 1S, and in the T-slot is arranged the head of the king-bolt 7, as indicated in Fig. 3 of the drawings, the king-bolt passing through the respective parts which are coupled to the other parts of the runninggear. It will be readily perceived that by this construction of the bolster-plate and the connection to the king-bolt the front bolster can be moved forward bythe movement of the wagon-bed and that the bed, with the hind carriage, can return to normal position when the vehicle has passed down the declivity and the brakes released; also, that the front carriage is free to turn on the king-bolt.

The operation is as follows: \Vhen the vehicle moves down a declivity or incline, there being no coupling-pin through the hounds they slide along on the coupling-pole until the hind wheels come in contact with the brake-shoes, when the weight of the load adj usts the pressure upon the brakes, and the vehicle, with the load, is let down the grade without much or any holdback effort on the part of the horses. \Vhen the vehicle has reached level ground, the hind carriage slides back, carrying with it the wagon-bed, if there be one, and automatically assumes its normal position with the brakes released.

1. The combination with the coupling-pole and hind wheels and axle provided with hounds slidingl y secured to the coupling-pole, of a brake mechanism including elbow brakelevers pivotally mounted at their elb'ows on the opposite limbs of the hounds, a sleeve rigidly but removablyattached to the couplingpole in front of the said hounds and connecting-links between said sleeve and the inner arms of the elbow brake-levers,whereby when the hind carriage is moved forward the brakes are automatically applied to the hind wheels.

2. The combination with the coupling-pole and hind wheels and axle provided with hounds slidingly secured tothe coupling-pole, of a brake mechanism comprising elbow brake-levers pivotally mounted at their elbows on the opposite limbs of the hounds, a sleeve rigidly but detachably arranged on the coupling-pole in front of the said hounds, connecting-links between said sleeve and the iuner arms of the elbow brake-levers and a suitable connection between the axle and the coupling-pole to prevent the hind carriage from moving forward the sliding sleeve on the coupling-pole.

3. The combination with thc coupling-pole, hind wheels and axle provided with hounds, of a sleeve uniting the forward end of the hounds and slidingly arranged on the coupling-pole, elbow brake-levers fulerumed at their elbows on the opposite limbs of the hounds, a sleeve on the coupling-pole in vfront of the hounds, fastening means to hold said sleeve to a set position on the coupling-pole, links between said sleeve and the inner arms of the brake-levers, a stop on the couplingpole to prevent the hounds from sliding backward beyond a determined point and means on the axle and coupling-pole to stop the hind carriage from moving forward on the coupling-pole.

et. The combination with the con pl in g-pole, hind wheels and axle provided with hounds, of a sleeve uniting the forward end of the hounds and slidingly arranged on the coupling-pole, elbow brake-levers fulcrumed at their elbows on the opposite limbs of the hounds, a sleeve on the coupling-pole in front of the hounds and adj ustabl y secured thereto, an adjustable sleeve or pin te stop the backward movement of the hounds, a stop on the coupling-pole adjacent to the hind axle, a bar supported and journaled to the brake, and provided with a lug to engage the said stop on the coupling-pole and prevent the forward movement of the hind carriage on the coupling-pole.

5. The combination with the brake mechanism arranged to be operated by a Afor\vai l-sliding movement of the hind carriage of the vehicle, of a stop on the coupling-pole adjacent to the front of the hind axle, bearings secured to the hind axle, a rocking bar journaled and secured in the bearings, and provided with a lug or arm to engage the stop on the coupling- IOO IIO

605,135 f l e pole anda lever to rock the bar and throw i vthe lug into and out of engagementwith the stop on the coupling-pole.

6. The combination with the brake mechanism arranged tovbe operated by the forwardsliding movement of the hind carriage, of the front-bolster bearing-plate on the under facev of the bolster formed with a transverse T-` shaped slot, and a king-bolt vhaving its head disposed in the slot.

7. The combination with the coupling-pole, hind wheels, and axle provided with hounds slidingly secured to the poupling-pole, of a brake mechanism comprising elbow brake-le- 

